The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1887-10-12

from the sea.
~Thene she blows" cried her father,
who had just emerged from the cabin
IL whaler will soon have her boats
down. Upon my word should like to
go,near those oil-hunters and see the sport
Even as he spoke four boats were drop
ped alongside the stranger, and they were
soon heading toward the spouts.
Il must see the fun, said the skipper,
"and shall. Lower the Dingey,' he
said. Il want three good men 10 go with
me-
Tie selected the three that were to 60,
among them Rollins, who had jus, been
relieved at the wheel. The boat was
soon lowered, with the skipper at the
tiller and the oarsmen in their places.
"Give way" cried the captain.
The boat made good progress toward
the whales. which were now heading
seawards. The sailors from the other
ship were pulling with might and main
after the huge fish, whose dark humps
were occasionally lifted above the sur
face. as they moved along on their way.
At last one Of the sharp pointed boats
Of the whaler was within the darting dis
tanee Of great monster which had lag
ged a little behind the rest Of the school.
A tall dark man, in guernsey, and blue
trousers, rose in the bow Of his boat, har-
poon in hand For an instant the weap-
on was poised. to be hurled the next in
slant with unerring aim. 1t was buried
+ to the socket in the whale, whose flukes
were seen whisking 10 and fro through
the white sheets Of spray that hid the
boat.
They are fast" remarked Captain
Burlyille, who, with his men-the latter
now resting on their oars, about sixty
fathoms from their ship-was an inter
ested spectator Of the scene.
From her fathers craft Mary had also
seen the man strike the whale. Poor
fish. she said with a shudder, as she
placed both little hands over her eyes
All at once she heard wild shouts
Looking in the direction Of the noise, she
perceived that the fast boat, dragged by
the whale. which had sounded going
down, was leading straight toward the
/ Dingey in which were her parent and the
three oarsmen. The whaleboat, it, crew
cheering and yelling like madmen,
seemed to cleave the water with the
swiftness Of an arrow, and If was soon
not more than forty fathoms from the
skipper and his companions
"Oh papa, you viii be run into.
screamed Mary in alarm. The captain
looked toward her, smiled, shook his
head, and in a minute he had the Dingey
pulled out Of the track of the coming
boat. Scarcely was this done, howevar,
when there was a cry of terror from the
Young girl, who now beheld the water
parted by the huge body Of the whale, as
the monster shot up, with the iron pro
iruding from its pumbs, and the line at
tached 10 the weapon whisking in many
bights and coils around it, The creature
was close to the Dingey, beating the sea
with his fukes and churning the foam
with his Jaw.
" Pull ahead :" shouted Burlyille, aware
Of his danger He directed the small
craft away from the whale, his three
oarsmen pulling vigorously. But before
he was six fathoms away from the ami
mai the latter suddenly made straight for
the little boa, his jaws wide open, his
sharp, saw-like fangs viciously revealed.
Take care there" came warningly
| from the whalemen, still more than a
hundred wards distant Burlville did his
best to escape the infuriated pursuer, but
the leviathan gained rapidly upon him,
and now, to avoid the great jaw, which
was about to close upon the fragile tern
Of the little vessel, he steered to one side,
In an instant the enormous flukes, al
most alongside of which the movement
of the skipper had brought him, were
raised high in air and whirled directly
over the Dingey, upon which it appeared
they were about to descend with a force
which would have crushed the light
planks 10 fragments Seeing these fear
ful weapons of the mighty fish tanning
the air above their heads, two of the
oarsmen at once sprang into the sea,
leaving Rollins and the Captain still in
the boat
MY iather-oh poor papa" cried
Mary, who now, very pale, leaned far
over the rail of the ship, her gaze riveted
upon her parent
The latter was in peculiarly perilous
situation 4 blight Of the line, whisking
from the whale, had caught about his
waist, and, having no knife with him, he
was unable 10 clear himselffrom the rope,
which had tightened about his body.
holding him down between two thwarts,
as the finkes with a crash struck the sea,
just missing the Dingey.
Rollins. who had been inclined to fol-
low the example of his two shipmates
when they jumped overheard, had con-
troled himself, when he perceived the
situation Of his captain. With a quick
motion of his oar he had caused the boat
TO shoot ahead. thus barely getting out Of
reach of those ponderous Aukes as they
descended Now he quickly drew the
sheath knife he wore in his belt, and,
springing to the skipper's side, he with
one blow severed the line that had
caught about the waist of the imperilled
man, and which, by this time was pulled
half way over the gunnel.
There was a roaring, gurgling sound,
a Missing mass of foam and spray, then
a crunching, swapping noise, as the boat
was crushed in the jaw of the whale.
Rollins and the Captain had rolled
over into the sea on that side of the
Dingey opposite to the deadly iangs. For
several soments they were hidden in
the sheets of flying spray from the gaze
of Mary Burlville, who had witnessed
with JOY and pride the gallant conduct Of
the young man whom she already Sc
cretly loved. Again she feared that after
all they might be lost be killed bv the
monster whose fiukes were still beating
the ocean. Soon these fears We're set at
rest.
The great fish went down under the
foaming waters, and there were her faith
or and Rollins now r;Eins> ON, Co., ~,